2019 Alumni Notes 2017-2018
2018
Ruslan Adamovics-Davtian
I have been interning with the San Francisco 49ers as a business intelligence intern in their Business Strategy & Analytics team. Today is actually my last day, and I will be moving to Milwaukee in a few weeks to start my next internship with the Brewers as a baseball research and development intern. I am happy to experience working inside an MLB front office under their baseball operations department and applying statistics and data science to baseball.
Robert Cenon
After graduating I took some time off and moved up to Sacramento to stay with my parents for a bit. I started working at Bio-Rad Laboratories last December as a data analyst, supporting the Sales, Marketing and Service teams. I'm currently exploring various side gigs but haven't found anything I want to do yet.
Gianna Ciaccio
I’ve been working in San Francisco at Gap Inc. as a data scientist focusing on pricing and promotion strategy alongside a few other Cal Poly statistics alumni since August 2018. The weekends are spent exploring various hiking spots in the Bay Area and enjoying an easily-accessible music scene, as well as hanging out with my cat.
Jenna Harrelson
After graduation I took off on an adventure through Asia, with no job lined up for when I returned. About halfway through my trip Dr. Rossman sent out an email from an analytics manager at TransUnion announcing an open data analyst position. I applied while still abroad and was offered the job two weeks after I returned to the U.S. I’ve been working here since September and have slowly but surely been gaining new analytics and business skills. It’s been a great first job so far. I currently use my lunch breaks as a time to study for the GRE as I’m planning to go to graduate school in the next couple of years. It’s been a crazy ride since graduating from Cal Poly, and I’m still so thankful for the all the support from the statistics faculty.
Gabrielle Ilenstine
After graduating last June, I traveled solo to Europe where I walked across Spain on the Camino de Santiago Frances with only a backpack and my two very blistered feet. I then continued exploring Portugal, Spain and Germany for another two months before returning back home to Washington. Shortly after returning, I applied for a job at YouGov, a consumer research and data analytics company, and about a month later I was offered the research analyst position. I am currently working out of their San Francisco office, where I do market research for large tech companies through online surveys. I work with a wonderful group of intelligent, kind people and am excited to see what else the Bay Area has to offer.
Emily Johnson
I am currently working at Precision for Medicine in Carlsbad, California, as a statistical programmer.
Lindsey McPhillips
I am currently at San Diego State University finishing up the first year of my master's in biostatistics. I hope to finish up my degree by December 2019. I have possible job offers in Boston for January 2020, so I may be moving to the East Coast to work for a consulting company. Nothing is set in stone. I may stay in San Diego, but the options are exciting.
Brannden Moss
I've been working since August as a cost analyst consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton in San Diego, which involves a blend of Tableau visualizations, Excel pivot tables, VBA and a lot of consulting. I use concepts I learned in Stat 465 every day when collecting and analyzing data. I'm beginning to branch into the Data Science Division of my company, and by December my job will be shifting from cost analysis to data science while remaining on the same team. Outside of work, I started a master’s in statistics at San Diego State University but have decided to take a leave of absence to focus on my full-time job and return to endurance sports after a long hiatus. I ran a 1:29 at the Encinitas Half Marathon and am currently training for the Rock and Roll Marathon June 2 and the Superfrog Half Ironman September 15.
Noelle Pablo
After graduation I traveled to Kyoto, Japan, with Dr. Chance and several other statistics faculty members to present my summer research on flipped simulation-based inference courses at the International Conference on Teaching Statistics. It was an amazing, unforgettable experience that I will forever be grateful for.
After returning from Japan, I accepted an R programmer position at Accessible Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Systems located at the University of Kansas’s School of Education. I work on several projects focused on improving student outcomes with a team of psychometricians and researchers who develop technology-based learning and assessment systems designed for students with disabilities and struggling learners. Earlier this year, my job sent me to the RStudio conference in Austin, Texas, where I ran into Dr. Glanz and Dr. Bodwin, who presented at the conference. I am thankful for my experience as a statistics major and hope everyone in the department is doing well.
Nicole Segovia
After graduation, I moved back to the Bay Area to continue my job search. I began working as a research data analyst and statistical consultant for Stanford’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery last August, and I’ve been loving it so far. I have a couple of publications in the works so far and am hoping for many more. It’s been an exciting, exhausting and rewarding journey transitioning from Cal Poly to work life, but thanks to the department I definitely feel prepared for what’s to come.
2017
Brian Bahmanyar
I’m a data scientist at Google in Mountain View. I work on understanding user behavior on Google Search and using it to improve the relevance of our search ads.
Lately, I’ve been learning to play the piano and reading a lot of psychology. I would highly recommend Don Norman’s “The Design of Everyday Things.”
Upneet Cheema
Life and time has been moving so quickly since graduating in June. To say graduation was a whirlwind is an understatement. Such a proud moment! Now, the next chapter has started in Las Vegas. I am currently an analyst at Boyd Gaming. Since my move, I have connected with some amazing people and mentors, who have made Las Vegas feel homey. In my off time, I hang out and discover the city, rollerblade, hike and read. I had said I always wanted to test the waters in corporate America, but my true passion is teaching. I hope to transition sometime in the future and also take some time out to travel. Although my time in SLO has come to end, the amazing memories and bonds will always be with me.
Caiti Feeley
After graduation I was lucky enough to travel to Ireland for two weeks with my Dad. We did some research on Ancestry.com and actually found my great-great-grandparents’ burial site along with some of our Irish relatives, the Fehillys (the original spelling of Feeley)! Saying the trip was spectacular would be an understatement. Since then, I have started my full-time position as a data scientist at Gap Inc. in San Francisco. Ironically enough, I'm on the same team as Cal Poly Statistics alumna Jewels Lee, and we sit next to each other. We're both very grateful to the Statistics Department for it's stellar education and post-grad preparation. Sending lots of love down to SLO!
Hayley Ford
After graduation I set off for an enriching and enlightening trip around Europe. We were there for 38 days and spent time in nine total countries. While we were there, my high school sweetheart and a fellow Cal Poly graduate, proposed! The wedding is set for June 2018, and we are so excited to start this new chapter.
After the incredible travels, I moved back to San Diego, where I grew up, and found a job. I was hired in October as a digital analytics intern for a digital marketing agency called Red Door Interactive. Although my internship was intended to last six months, just last week I was promoted to a full-time, permanent position. This opportunity has been amazing, and every day I learn so many new things. The Analytics team is excited to explore predictive modeling opportunities for our clients using my unique background in statistics as a guide. I can’t wait to see what the future holds!
Jake Frattone
After graduating, I moved back to my hometown in Southern California and continued looking for a job. After some time, I finally accepted a position as an associate analyst in business information at Applied Medical. Right now I am on the Commissions Team. I think it’s a great first job and a nice change of pace from being a student.
I have great memories of the SLO life. This includes everything from the late night Stat Lab study sessions, Woodstock’s Trivia nights, disc golf rounds after class and weekly beer die tournaments. I am really looking forward to and planning on coming back to SLO in the near future to visit friends and faculty.
Christina Garcia
I have been working at LBN, a digital marketing agency in Los Angeles, for about three months. I am immensely blessed and honored to be working with Cal Poly stats alumni Mat Adams and Maxwell Klingmann. Life is an adventure!
Elaina Gates
After graduation I moved back to my hometown of Pleasanton. I was lucky enough to start working in September, so I had some time off in the summer to relax. I was able to travel to Alaska and explore with friends. In September I started work at Workday as a data conversion and reporting consultant. So far I am really enjoying work and am looking forward to bringing many more Cal Poly alumni to Workday!
Jonathan Kisch
I can’t believe half a year has passed since we all graduated; I hope everyone is doing well and doing amazing statistical things both at Cal Poly and abroad! Since graduating I have accepted a business technology analyst position at Deloitte in San Francisco. I haven’t made the move yet but will soon be leaving the Central Coast for the Bay Area. I plan on attending graduate school next fall and am currently finishing my applications. If all goes well, I’ll be pursuing a master's degree in data science.
Francis Lara
Since finishing my degree, I've been working as a data analyst intern at Empyr, a marketing/tech company based in San Diego. I am currently in pursuit of full time opportunities as well.
Bradley Lubich
A few days after graduating I (along with my new bride, Marissa) helped lead a small team of Cal Poly students to Asia to bring the good news of Jesus to people who have not heard it before. We returned to the U.S. at the end of July and went straight from LAX to Riverside to look for housing while crashing with my cousins for a few days. Then, we spent a few weeks visiting family in Northern California. At the end of August, we moved to Riverside where she started with a new team with CRU and I started graduate school in statistics at UC Riverside. Graduate school has been a challenge, but it’s nothing Cal Poly hasn’t prepared me for. We’ve met some cool people in Riverside and are enjoying the start of the next phase of life. Thanks to all my Cal Poly professors who have helped prepare me — God bless!
Reina Ono
I currently work at Continental Datagraphics, a Boeing Company in Long Beach, Calif. I work within the C-17 program at Boeing as a data analyst for the C-17 Globemaster III (Air Force defense planes).
Claudia Sison
I am currently in the Business Analytics Master's Program here at Cal Poly and will graduate in June of 2018. So far, my experience in the Statistics Department has really given me the opportunity to excel in my classes. I have been applying to different types of jobs, mainly tech companies in the Silicon Valley/San Francisco area and quantitative analyst positions for Major League Baseball teams. I haven't truly experienced the post-graduate life yet as I am still a student, but I love being able to be in SLO for another year!
Caroline Yovanovich
After graduating, I spent most of the summer at home spending time with family and friends. In September, I moved to Santa Barbara to start graduate school at UC Santa Barbara. I'm almost done with my first quarter working towards a doctorate in statistics. I'm very thankful for Cal Poly and the Statistics Department for preparing me for this new chapter, and I hope to come back and visit soon!
